"WE SURE HAVE FUN WHEN BETTY VISITS"...Frances Murphy

BOY!     Frances Murphy, you said a mouthful.  
I realize that I am writing about this a couple of years late, but better late than never.  It was during the Chandler ART QUILTS XVI, November 2011 that BETTY came to town.

I'm talking about THE BETTY BUSBY.  She and her friend Holly Altman came to Sun City to play with us and in the quilting world, it doesn't get much better than that.

DIANE, MARGARET,SANDY, ELIZABETH, HOLLY, BETTY, AND FRANCES

Betty H and OUR Mom was there too, but must have been taking the pictures.  MOM is MOM to all of us kids and now to Betty B and Holly too.

Betty drove here from her home in New Mexico and brought all her STUFF here to give us a workshop on painting silk.  

HERE is Betty Hahns studio.  As Betty H has a lot of STUFF too, we were not short on STUFF.


WE HAD SO MUCH FUN USING ALL THAT STUFF.  IT WAS WONDERFUL AND WE ALL MADE MINI MASTERPIECES...

After we were done making masterpieces we changed into our party duds and we were off to dinner and then on to the ARTIST RECEPTION AT CHANDLER.  The theme of the show was  'SOMETHING TO SAY',  AND DID WE EVER....

BETTY AND HER QUILT 'MOURNING DOVES'

This quilt was on the front of the postcard invitation to the show.  Betty is all smiles in her
polka dot  jacket.  She is very very fond of polka dots and you  can almost bet that she will have polka dot socks too... polka dot underwear?  

I'M NOT THAT MUCH OF A BETTING WOMAN... but if I had to guess.  MAYBE.

MEMORY,THREADS AND BURSTS

Here is Betty next to her quilt.  Her Jacket is just as bright as her quilt.  As you can see, Betty is quite a colorful character.  Her art is like her life..  FULL AND
ROBUST!  And Betty always has something to say.

LEFT BEHIND

Here I am with my quilt.  I was really worried about whether my quilt would be well received because it was so intensely personal.  It was  the second quilt in my ROSES FOR SANDY series.  The whole quilt is based on a picture taken right after my mother's funeral.  I didn't need to worry.  After the exhibition was over this quilt had been second in viewers choice.  The viewers had felt my emotion and that was very validating.  They heard what I said.

THOUGHT PROCESS I

This was Francie's first time in the Chandler show.  I really have to tell you that PPPPPPPPP PPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPERSERVERANCE really works.  For the 2010 Chandler show Francie had entered and was rejected, but she entered the same quilt in 2011 and was IN.  It goes to show what a different juror  and a different theme, can do.

                THIS TIME FRANCIE HAD 
                 SOMETHING TO SAY.

So that is the story of BETTY and HOLLY coming to town.  Since then we have gotten to know both BETTY and HOLLY better.  I've now seen HOLLY'S work and know she deserves her name in capitol letters too.  In fact we all do.....................

                    BETTY BUSBY
                    HOLLY ALTMAN
                    BETTY HAHN
                    FRANCES MURPHY
                    ANNA MARIE PETERSON
                    MARGARET GORSK
                    DIANE KUCERA
                    ELIZABETH PFEIFFER
                    SANDRA BRANJORD

 I count myself lucky to be friends with all these women.  Each of them are fine artists in their own right.  And all of you are fine artists too,  even if you can't paint, or draw, or even sew, you are ARTISTS.

                 "ARTISTS OF THE EVERYDAY"
                   
                  CAN'T PAINT,
                  CAN'T DRAW,
                  CAN SEW A LITTLE.
                                  ...REDFOX